John R. Miles: Being Needed Isn't the Same as Mattering

You can keep showing up, delivering results, and supporting everyone around you while losing touch with yourself. John R. Miles joins Mick to explore the difference between being needed and knowing that your presence matters.

John shares the calling behind his work, the experience he calls the slow fade, and the ideas discussed in The Mattering Effect. Together, they unpack how leaders can help people feel seen, known, valued, and able to make a difference, and why that work also has to begin within ourselves.

You'll Hear

• Why being useful to others can leave your own sense of significance unanswered.

• How John describes the slow fade in high performers and caregivers.

• Why a culture of mattering requires more than recognizing someone's job title.

• The mattering needs pyramid and John's MATTER framework: meaning, autonomy, trust, time, energy, and reciprocity.

• The turning points that led John toward a more intentional life.

• How small, self-honoring choices can help rebuild belief.

• The Unplugged 5: culture, personal growth, podcast conversations, and legacy.

Chapters

00:00 Your presence makes a difference

00:12 Welcome to Mick Unplugged

02:04 The Because: a calling to serve

07:24 Recognizing the slow fade

11:18 The Unplugged Truth: seen, known, and valued

15:45 The mattering needs pyramid

21:21 The Hot Takes: The Mattering Effect

26:43 Meaning, autonomy, trust, time, energy, reciprocity

29:52 The Room: the turning points behind the mission

37:53 The mattering loop and self-honoring choices

42:14 The Unplugged 5

50:32 Final reflections and your because

Connect & Discover John R. Miles:

Website: https://johnrmiles.com/

The Mattering Effect: https://thematteringeffect.com/

Passion Struck: https://passionstruck.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnrmiles/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/john_r_miles/

Follow Mick

Mick Hunt Official: https://mickhuntofficial.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mickunplugged/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mickunplugged

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MickUnpluggedPodcast

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mickhunt/

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mick-unplugged/id1731755953

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2cUp7JRzkVqunYmD2ENe4g

Buy Mick's book, How to Be a Good Leader When You've Never Had One: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Leader-When-Youve-Never/dp/1394357958

Your because is your superpower. Go unleash it.

Content note: This conversation includes a home invasion, bereavement, suicide loss, and personal experiences with mental health.